Washington, 23 May 1997 (RFE/RL) - A senior U.S. government official, Thomas Dine, has been appointed president of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, the U.S.-funded radios broadcasting to Central and Eastern Europe, the Baltic States and the former Soviet Union.
Dine has been Assistant Administrator for Europe and the New Independent States at the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) since February 1994. He was responsible for overseeing U.S. assistance programs for the emerging democracies of the region.
Dine will succeed Kevin Klose, who has been appointed director of the U.S. International Broadcasting Bureau.
Before joining USAID, Dine headed the American Israeli Public Affairs Committee from 1980 to 1993. Before that, he was a legislative assistant to the late U.S. Senator Frank Church and was the national security staff director of the Senate Budget Committee.
The chairman of the Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty board of directors, David Burke, said Dine will bring unique knowledge, experience and energy to the radios. Dine will take up his duties on August 1, 1997.